


Indefinitely

by jane_x80



Series: Indefinitely [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, NCIS
Genre: 2017 NCIS Reverse Bang Challenge, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Pre-Slash, Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-21
Updated: 2017-05-21
Packaged: 2018-11-02 08:20:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10940616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jane_x80/pseuds/jane_x80
Summary: Tony meets a man at a Julia Roberts movie marathon at a movie theater in DC, who hasn't seen any of the movies before. They strike up a conversation, then a friendship, and then it was more than friendship, and before Tony knows it, he's ready for even more with the quietly charismatic Steve Rogers.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the second of my two stories for the [NCIS Reverse Bang Challenge](http://ncis-bang.livejournal.com/47397.html).
> 
> This is the original artwork.
> 
> [](http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/solariana/7360051/30363/30363_original)
> 
> I had claimed the artwork for [Doubts: Broken Guide](http://archiveofourown.org/works/10923396) first. But then a couple of weeks ago, I heard that the author that had originally claimed this artwork had had to drop out, and I had a good draft of Broken Guide written, so with the kind permission of the challenge organizer [Jacie](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Jacie) and the artist [penumbria](http://archiveofourown.org/users/penumbria/pseuds/penumbria), I claimed the artwork and wrote this story which was inspired by it. 
> 
> The original prompt is:  
>  Is there additional art available for this prompt? (yes/no): not currently  
>  Preferred rating of the fic: any  
>  Categories allowed (Gen, Het or Slash): slash  
>  Pairing(s) allowed: Tony/any male  
>  Crossovers allowed (if any): if desired but not necessary (NCIS: NO, Criminal Minds, Stargate SG1 or Atlantis, MCU, Kingsman)  
>  Prompt/outline/summary (optional): Tony is proposing to the man he loves  
>  Anything you do not want to see in the story (optional): TIVA, non canon character death
> 
> I went with a crossover with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and thought that Tony would pair nicely with Steve Rogers. :D
> 
> And to top it off, penumbria who created the original artwork that inspired this story went and made another banner for this! I really loved both banners! Thanks penumbria! :D Check out penumbria's [art post here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/10950054).
> 
> The title of the story comes from Julia Roberts' final word in the movie Notting Hill, which is the quote that was in the prompt art.
> 
> Also, huge thanks to [cutsycat](http://archiveofourown.org/users/cutsycat/pseuds/cutsycat) who betaed this story for me! Appreciate all your help, hon! :D I have edited and edited the story since you last saw it. All remaining mistakes are my own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I set this story to begin about a year before the events of Captain America: Winter Soldier, which corresponds roughly to about when Ziva left NCIS, beginning of s11.
> 
> This is my first crossover into the MCU! :D
> 
> Also, since the prompt artwork included a modified quote from the movie _Notting Hill_ , I referenced a couple of scenes from this movie as well as from _Runaway Bride_. It was in the prompt! ;)

They accidentally met in a darkened movie theater on a week day, watching _Notting Hill_ at a Julia Roberts movie marathon organized at one of those old movie theaters in downtown DC.

Tony kept hearing snorts of disbelief coming from the guy a row in front of him, a couple of seats to his right. Admittedly, he seemed to only be snorting at the cheesy lines, and given that they were probably the only people in the theater, it didn’t really matter. But Tony was having a bad day and sometimes he needed the cheese to keep going. His own life wasn’t giving him romance or satisfaction, and so he did what he always did when he needed an escape, he sought refuge in the make believe.

He tried not to care about the guy’s snorts – after all he owned the DVD (not that he would admit to that) and could easily watch it in the comfort and silence of his own home, but he’d wanted to go out and not be alone for a bit. So he bore with it. Until they got to Tony’s favorite line…

“ _The fame thing isn’t really real. Don’t forget, I’m also just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her_ ,” the Julia Roberts character was saying on screen.

“ _Seriously?_ ” the guy exclaimed out loud. “Nobody in their right mind would buy this crap!”

“Some of us are actually here because we like it,” Tony bit out, having had enough of the other man’s reactions.

“Oh!” the guy sounded surprised. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t think anyone else was in here. I watched the movie before this one and there wasn’t anyone else in the theater.”

“It’s fine,” Tony conceded, feeling both grumpy and somewhat embarrassed at his lack of control. He had quietly entered in the beginning of the movie, when the theater was dark. The guy didn’t know he was there.

“I’ll be quiet now. Sorry,” the guy said apologetically.

And the guy did contain himself. He made no more sounds, and Tony suddenly felt like an asshole. After all they were in a practically deserted movie theater. And truth be told, Tony had agreed with some of the earlier snorts. He was still a mostly cynical person. And he’d made the guy shut the hell up instead of reacting to the movie, and the whole thing about movies was how they made a person react. It was why Tony loved them. It took him out of his own stupid, inconsequential life and put emotions in him that he couldn’t seem to attain on his own. And here he’d cowed the poor man and stopped him from enjoying the movie and reacting naturally to it.

He stayed quiet until the movie was almost over. But at the press conference scene, Tony couldn’t take it anymore. The guilt from silencing the other man’s reactions was really eating into him.

“What about you? Would you reconsider, if you were her?” Tony asked the guy, when the Hugh Grant character in the guise of a reporter asked Julia at the press conference if she would reconsider their relationship, if he begged her.

“What?” came the cautious but surprised response.

“Would you take that as an apology and a reason for reconciliation?” Tony asked.

The guy made a skeptical sound. “I suppose if I loved someone enough,” he said doubtfully.

“You don’t sound like you believe that.”

“Life’s not a movie,” came the answer, and the man sounded sad.

Tony couldn’t help but hum his agreement. But when Julia Roberts answered the question about wanting to stay in the UK “indefinitely”, and smiled that smile of hers at Hugh Grant, Tony’s heart ached. He wanted that. He wanted that for himself. He wanted to be more than just himself, he wanted to be one half of a true partnership. He wanted to put someone ahead of himself because he loved them so much, that he would stay or go and be wherever they wanted him to be because of it. Wanted to be with someone who he loved so much it made him want to stay with them indefinitely. And he wanted the person he loved to love him back in the same way. He tamped that feeling down quickly. He’d long learned that none of these movies were real. And wanting things he couldn’t have only depressed him even further. Better not to think too hard and just enjoy the story.

And when the movie ended and the lights came on in the theater, the guy turned to Tony, took a look at his face, and gasped. “What the hell happened to you?” he exclaimed.

Tony looked down at himself. He knew he looked like he’d gone ten rounds with Muhammad Ali and lost. That was because he _had_ gone a couple rounds with a perp just the day before. And while he hadn’t lost, the perp had been taken down and might have received a few bruises himself before Tony had viciously and tightly cuffed him, unfortunately he had taken a bit of a beating. He had a pretty impressive black eye, a cut above his eyebrow that was held together with a couple of butterfly bandages, a split lip, and his arm was in a sling. The man had carried a knife and slashed his arm but good. Stupid marines and their stupid rules about carrying knives. Tony hadn’t had time to pull his own knife – he might not be a marine but he sure as hell adhered to that rule about knives – but he’d disarmed the man and subdued him after that, despite the wound in his arm.

“Occupational hazard?” Tony said wryly.

“You work as a professional mugging victim?”

“Law enforcement,” Tony shrugged. “But you should’ve seen the other guy.”

“Oh, man,” the man shook his head. “Well, thanks you know, for keeping us safe. It’s a thankless job sometimes. I bet.”

Tony grunted his assent.

“Hey, man, I _am_ sorry about making all that noise and you know, being inconsiderate during the movie.”

“There’s no one else here,” Tony shook it off. “Plus I’ve seen this movie more than once.”

The man gave him a look.

“Just, you know, don’t tell anyone I said that,” Tony felt himself blushing.

The man grinned. “You sound kind of like a believer,” he said accusingly. “True love. Fate.”

“I’d like to believe,” Tony admitted candidly. “Just because I haven’t seen it or experienced it, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist, right?”

“So you believe in unicorns and leprechauns too, then?”

Tony laughed. “Well, I don’t know about unicorns and leprechauns, or the abominable snowman for that matter, but we’re not talking about magical creatures. We’re talking about a human connection. Emotions that are bigger than a person. I might not personally be acquainted with that, but I think I’ve seen it, you know? In some people. Lonely old men who desperately miss their dead wives. The spouses who naturally die within days of each other for no other reason than they can’t live without the other.”

“Dying of a broken heart? That’s romantic,” the guy’s tone was slightly facetious.

Tony grinned. “What can I say? I’m a glass half full kind of person. But it doesn’t mean that love doesn’t exist.”

The other man snorted. “I guess that’s true enough.”

“Sorry I was a dick and yelled at you.”

The man smiled at him – and Tony sat up and took note because it was a very nice smile. Shy, yet sexy. And the man was almost breathtakingly handsome, dressed simply in a leather jacket, t-shirt and jeans. He could see the well defined muscles under the tight t-shirt and he tried not to ogle the guy. Something about him was familiar, too, but Tony was exhausted and his head hurt too much to try to figure out who the man was. So he let it go.

“I’m guessing you probably have a hell of a headache and my comments didn’t help?” the guy asked.

Tony grunted his answer, a little embarrassed at his current condition.

“You catching the next one?” the guy asked, eyebrows raised questioningly.

“ _Runaway Bride?_ Yeah.”

“Me, too.”

“You can talk through that one if you like,” Tony said magnanimously. “I’ve seen it before.”

“More than twice, if I read you correctly,” the man told him, grinning.

“I never said that,” Tony denied it, feeling himself blush.

“Uh-huh,” the man agreed, and this time he was most definitely being facetious.

They laughed, and stayed until the theater darkened again and the previews began. The next Julia Roberts movie started.

“Hey, wasn’t she in the hooker movie with that same guy?” the guy asked Tony. “I saw that yesterday.”

“Yeah!” Tony rolled his eyes. “ _Pretty Woman_.”

“Yeah that one.”

“This one is less hookerish. Although she’s still kind of slutty.”

The guy laughed. He moved over so he was only one seat over from Tony, in the row in front of him, and they continued their banter through the movie. They both made fun of the second proposal scene, where Julia Roberts ended up on one knee proposing to Richard Gere.

“Surely even you, who wants to believe, can’t believe _that_ part,” the guy shook his head.

“I can’t believe it, but I want to,” Tony said simply, for once not lying.

The guy sighed. “Wish I could believe.”

When the movie ended, and the lights came on, they blinked until their eyes adjusted and looked quietly at each other.

“You staying for the next one?” the guy asked him, somewhat hopefully Tony thought.

Tony glanced at his watch, wincing as he jolted his injured arm. “Nah,” he sighed. “I should probably go home.”

“You’re out sick today, I assume?” he gestured at Tony’s battered face.

“S’why I’m in a movie theater in the middle of a weekday,” Tony couldn’t help but pout. He hated the reminder that he’d gotten beat up. Again.

The man looked guilty.

“Are you playing hooky?” Tony asked him playfully.

“Kind of,” the man admitted. “I just moved here. Work was quiet. So…”

“Yeah, I get that.” Tony looked at him. “You watching the next movie?”

He sighed. “I don’t know if I can take much more of this…” he said softly. “I mean, life just isn’t anything like this. Except maybe the violent killing people stuff.” This last sentence was mumbled but Tony heard it. He decided not to comment on it though, letting it sit quietly and niggle in the back of his mind.

“I just zone in and out and only listen to the parts I want to listen to. It’s kind of comforting,” Tony offered. “Although it was fun with the commentary that last movie.”

“Uh, I’m kind of watching them for the first time? So I don’t really know what to focus on and what’s too cheesy to take.”

“You’re shitting me?” Tony couldn’t help himself. “Surely not? I mean, even _Pretty Woman?_ ”

“Even _Pretty Woman_ ,” the guys said solemnly.

“How the hell can that happen? How could you have missed _Pretty Woman?_ ” Tony stared at the guy, wondering if he’d grown up under a rock or in a religious cult or something.

The man shrugged. “I just kind of, woke up, and found that I’d missed a bunch of things,” he said softly.

“So you come to a movie theater by yourself in the middle of the day to what, catch up?”

“Too many things go over my head,” the man said sadly. “Thought I should rectify that.”

“You could just get Netflix and stay home and watch a bunch of this.”

“I could. But…going to the movies was kind of a big deal when I was growing up, you know? It was an event. So it doesn’t feel right to sit alone in my apartment and watch movies.”

The theater darkened again. “Shit, next movie’s starting,” Tony said, getting up. “You want to get coffee with me?” He wasn’t ready to stop talking to the guy, and if he’d read it right, neither was the other man.

The man gave him a long look before he nodded. “Sure.”

They walked out together, and Tony held out his good hand. “Tony,” he introduced himself.

The man gave him that adorable, shy smile again.

“Steve,” he said, taking Tony’s hand and shaking it. Steve had a nice, firm grip, and his hand was warm in Tony’s.

Tony stared at Steve’s face, his classic bone structure, the expressive lips, and at Steve’s blue eyes which didn’t seem to miss much, even though they had an air of melancholy about them. But they were beautiful. Beautiful blue eyes. And Tony had a thing for blue eyed men.

“Figured we should know each other’s names,” Tony said.

“Why’s that?”

“So I don’t have to tell people I met ‘this guy’ in a dark movie theater on a weekday, like a sexual deviant. People would ask why I needed to watch porn illicitly in public.”

“Porn!” Steve’s eyes widened. “What?”

“That’s at the theater a couple blocks over.”

“I’m not going to ask you how you know that,” Steve said solemnly before he started fake coughing. “Pervert!” he coughed.

Tony laughed. He liked Steve. He liked Steve a lot. He looked so very familiar but Tony’s head was still pounding too hard for him to put the pieces together.

“I feel like I ought to know who you are,” Tony muttered.

Steve smiled. “I have that kind of face,” he said, with that same sad, solemn air.

Tony gave him a sidelong glance and decided to just enjoy their time together and worry about who Steve was later. When his brain was working again, and when he wasn’t hurting quite so badly.

It was one of those weird meetings that normally Tony would just chalk up to random fate and that would be the end of it. He would have walked away and never seen Steve again. But instead, they had coffee, a good conversation, exchanged phone numbers, and Tony invited him to the movies that weekend. It wasn’t until they were sitting in the dark, this time next to each other, watching _North by Northwest_ , which Steve hadn’t seen either, that Tony realized who he was. Heart pounding, he spent the rest of the movie staring at Steve’s profile. For his part, Steve glanced over at him a couple of times, but he kept his attention on the movie and crunched noisily on popcorn until the movie ended.

When the lights came on, Steve sighed and turned to Tony who was staring at him, saucer-eyed. He lifted an eyebrow wearily. “Yeah?” he asked.

“Y-you’re Steve Rogers,” Tony breathed.

“Uh-huh,” Steve said matter of factly.

“ _The_ Steve Rogers. Captain Rogers.”

“Uh-huh,” Steve said again.

Tony nodded and tried to shake it off. He was watching a movie with Captain America himself. Well, _of course_ the guy hadn’t seen a bunch of movies, he’d literally been on ice the whole time! Tony stared at Steve for a long moment before he started snickering.

“What?” Steve asked cautiously.

“You said, you kind of ‘woke up and found that you’d missed a bunch of things’,” Tony snickered.

“It’s the truth!”

Tony rolled his eyes. “Understatement,” he shook his head, controlling his urge to keep laughing uncontrollably. He’d watched three movies with Captain America, and they’d had coffee together without him realizing who he was. Who did that? He was kicking himself for not recognizing Captain America right off the bat. The man’s image was everywhere! Although without the costume and the shield, he was a lot less recognizable.

Steve watched him for a long moment, as if trying to figure out what to expect next. Tony gave him a wry grin.

“Apparently I need to turn in my badge since I didn’t recognize who you were right away,” he said apologetically.

“You looked like you were probably slightly concussed when we met,” Steve shrugged. “But it was nice. To just be Steve.”

Tony gave him a long look. Steve was probably never seen for who he really was. Instead he was known for what he had done, what he could do and the image that they’d cultivated for him. He was a symbol now, and not perceived as a person. Tony knew a thing or two about being judged by reputation instead of by who he really was. He pursed his lips. “You can continue to just be Steve, if you like,” he offered.

Steve gave him another contemplative look.

“You want to go have coffee with me again?” Tony offered, somewhat warily.

After a long pause, Steve cocked his head. “No,” he said, making Tony’s heart sink. “But I could murder a cheeseburger or three right about now.” Steve had quite the metabolism and he didn’t have to hide it from Tony anymore.

Tony grinned. “I know just the place.”

Once Tony got over being awkward around Steve, they continued to hang out. They really did like being in each other’s company, and Tony tried to treat Steve as he would one of his co-workers or a frat brother, and they began watching movies together whenever their schedules aligned. Tony took it upon himself to educate Steve on what he’d missed, which seemed to be practically everything in the last seventy years. Not that Tony didn’t understand why that was, but it became his mission to familiarize Steve with the movies and books that he’d missed.

And it turned out that they enjoyed each other’s company. They really enjoyed each other’s company.

Things slowly escalated. Steve was shy and inexperienced, despite his bulging muscles and traffic stopping good looks. And Tony was perhaps too experienced and had been hurt one too many times, and he was certainly more than a little hesitant about starting a relationship with a man, what with having a career in law enforcement. And especially since Steve Rogers, Captain America himself, was so prominently in the public eye. But slowly they began to trust each other more, and started hanging out without going out to the movies. Instead, they spent time at Tony’s apartment with all his movies, his gadgetry, his well stocked pantry and his talent for making from scratch, home cooked meals. Steve’s apartment was fairly spartan and after Tony rolled his eyes at the stack of take out menus and the TV that only had the local network channels, they tended to spend their time at Tony’s.

And the rest, as they say, was history. They’d gradually moved from friends to lovers, and now, a year later, here Tony was leaving work, jittery as all hell. He’d asked for the weekend off, not caring when Gibbs gave him that look – that ‘you must really be stupid, DiNozzo’, look. Because they weren’t on call. But Tony knew that they could be called in at any time whether they were on call or not, what with them being the MCRT and all, and he really didn’t want anything interrupting him this weekend. He had plans for this weekend. Big, important plans. That didn’t involve him having to run off to a crime scene to photograph or bag and tag or interview witnesses. No, sir. Tony had plans with his man, who he hadn’t seen in a couple of weeks.

Steve had to travel for work fairly often, and had been away for a couple of weeks. Tony never asked what Steve was up to at work, figured it was mostly classified and it wasn’t his business, as long as Steve was happy doing what he was doing. Besides, everything Steve did was so hush hush and Tony only knew what happened if what Steve and his team had done couldn’t be adequately covered up and made the news. But he accepted the limitations that Steve’s work imposed upon them. As long as Steve kept coming home to him, he didn’t really care.

And if anyone ever implied that Steve was in any way someone he should be suspicious of, then Tony would totally be the first to punch their lights out for implying that Steve was in any way anything but honorable. Hell, Steve was a fucking boy scout. Not that anyone Tony knew knew about Steve. Tony’s life at NCIS had been steadily deteriorating, and he no longer shared anything that meant anything to him with anyone there. He’d been up front with Steve, telling him his worries and troubles at work, and Steve was all for him resigning and moving on from the agency. But Tony couldn’t find the strength to do it. At least he hadn’t so far.

Still, Tony knew that Steve was the best man that he would ever know, and Steve was the person who made him feel all those things he’d longed to feel. He loved Steve. And he knew that he was lucky to have him. He never wanted to lose him. Hence the need for uninterrupted time this weekend. Steve would be coming home after a couple of weeks away (nothing had been in the news so Tony had no idea where Steve had been or what he’d been up to) and Tony had plans, with a capital P.

So Tony ignored Gibbs’ look and locked in his time off on a weekend that he wasn’t on call, before he scampered off. Steve had texted to say he would be home for dinner and Tony had things to do. He left right at five, even though Gibbs gave him that look that meant he would probably have some questions to answer, but he wasn’t answering them until Monday. At the earliest. Because he had the goddamned weekend off and some big, huge plans! So he left, ignoring Gibbs’ stormy look – what look wasn’t stormy from Gibbs these days anyways? And he ignored the questioning looks from McGee and their brand new probie Bishop.

He had things to do. And he needed to get them done before Steve came home.  
 


	2. Chapter 2

When Steve finally got into DC and biked to Tony’s apartment, he let himself in with his key after knocking softly. Tony usually got home late from work anyway. NCIS kept him very busy. But when he walked in, he was completely surprised by what he saw.

All over Tony’s immaculate apartment – the man was pretty OCD about things, not a speck of dust, not a thing out of place, which was how Tony kept his apartment at all times – but tonight, all over the apartment Tony had lit candles. Little tea lights lit the apartment. Larger candles and even LED lights were on almost every surface. And scattered on the floor was a trail of rose petals leading from the front door to the dining room.

Steve put his keys in the bowl on the little table by the front door, took a moment to unbuckle and pull off his knee-high biker boots and place them neatly in the closet. He also took off his dark blue leather jacket and hung it up. Tony liked it when he was neat, not that he was a particularly messy person. He padded in his socked feet, following the rose petals, feeling a little anxious and excited.

Tony’s baby grand gleamed softly in the candlelight, and Steve ran his fingers on its polished surface as he made his way to the dining room. The dining table was covered in a thick white tablecloth, and the table set with Tony’s mother’s china, and linen napkins. Two place settings. Candles on the table.

“Tony?” Steve called, still not seeing the man himself. “Babe, what’s going on? Am I missing something?” Suddenly Steve started panicking. Had he forgotten some kind of anniversary? A birthday? It wasn’t his birthday. And it wasn’t Tony’s birthday either. It wasn’t the anniversary of the day they’d met – they’d had a little celebration at that movie theater on a weekday the previous month for that, and thinking about that celebration still made him feel like a sexual deviant. He tried to stop himself from blushing at the thought of what they’d gotten up to in a darkened movie theater. But still, he had no idea what Tony was doing tonight. What was this about?

And then there was Tony himself, walking in behind him, dressed in Steve’s favorite way – in one of his expensive designer suits and an open collar shirt, no tie.

“Hey,” Tony gave him that brilliant smile of his, the one that Steve never saw him give anyone else. It wasn’t the charming smile, or the flirtatious smile, or that sly, dangerous smile. Tony had a hundred different smiles and Steve had seen them all, when Tony was manipulating the people around him to get what he wanted. Tony wasn’t even above using one of those other smiles on Steve himself, when he wanted to convince Steve to do something – usually something involving a movie that Steve didn’t think he would be interested in, or even some sexual kink that Tony wanted to try out. But tonight, there was no trace of those other smiles. This one was a genuine, sincere, loving smile, and Steve knew that he was the only one lucky enough to ever see it, which always made the ice around his heart melt. But tonight, underneath the smile there seemed to be an undertone of nervousness.

Tony pulled him into an embrace, not giving him time to think, and Steve immediately kissed him. Tony melted into his arms, and the kiss escalated from a soft kiss to say hello, to one where Steve was grabbing a fistful of Tony’s short brown hair, angling his head so he could devour Tony’s mouth. When they finally pulled apart, Tony’s smile seemed less nervous.

“I didn’t miss an important date, did I?” Steve asked, trying not to respond to Tony’s nervousness.

“No,” Tony shook his head. “No, you didn’t.”

“Everything looks so fancy,” Steve said, gesturing to the table and the apartment helplessly.

“Yeah. I may have gone a little overboard,” Tony said, giving him a sheepish grin.

“I can see that. What’s the occasion?” Steve didn’t know how to be anything but direct.

“Well, you know… I was wondering if you know…” Tony stumbled over the words and fell silent.

Steve gave Tony what he hoped was an encouraging look, as he took Tony’s hand and gently rubbed soothing circles on the back of it.

Tony swallowed, and started a few sentences, but each time he stuttered and trailed away. Steve was starting to worry now. Tony was one of the wittiest people he knew, and he knew another Tony who was comparably snarky, so it was saying a lot. But here his Tony was, stammering and stuttering, starting his sentences over and saying different things but never finishing or getting to the point. It was starting to worry him.

“Babe,” he finally stopped his lover. “Whatever it is, it’s fine. We’ll deal with it together. OK?”

Tony took a deep breath and let it out. Keeping his eyes down, he finally whispered, “I’m just a boy standing in front of a boy, asking him to love him*.”

“Babe, I do love you,” Steve assured Tony, not for the first time. “You never have to ask me like that. You know that.”

Tony blushed, making Steve stare at him, puzzled. Why would Tony be embarrassed? And it wasn’t like they had been keeping their feelings for each other secret. There had to be a reason for Tony to blush like that.

“Wait. Are you quoting a movie?” he finally realized it.

Tony looked up, his beautiful green eyes wide with nerves. “Our first movie together.”

“The one where we both went during a weekday afternoon, two random strangers meeting in the dark like sexual deviants? Isn’t that what you said?”

“Forget the sexual deviant parts. We weren’t even watching porn. Come on! Don’t tell me you forgot that first movie we watched together? And that line?”

“It was _Notting Hill_ ,” Steve said, rolling his eyes. “Yeah I remember that line.”

“You snorted in disbelief at it.”

“Yah-huh,” Steve made a face. “I’d snort in disbelief again!”

Tony’s face fell.

“Wait, babe, I still don’t understand,” Steve looked concerned. “What am I missing here?”

“Wanted to ask you if you’d stay with me. Be with me.”

“I’m here, babe. As long as you’ll have me. Although you know, I will still have work commitments, and so will you.”

“Yeah. I know,” Tony nodded, swallowing hard.

“But I’ll stay with you,” Steve saw that Tony still wasn’t quite happy with what was going on, and suddenly he remembered what Julia Roberts’ last word had been in that movie. “I’ll stay with you indefinitely,” he declared.

Tony’s smile widened, and he couldn’t help the sigh of relieve. “Indefinitely?” he asked.

“Indefinitely,” Steve repeated, nodding, his eyes solemn. He’d said it like a vow.

“The readers of _Horse and Hound_ are absolutely delighted*,” Tony breathed, affecting a fake British accent, making Steve laugh.

Then Tony pulled a box out of his pocket and opened it, showing Steve two wedding bands. He slowly went down on one knee. His eyebrows quirked questioningly at Steve, and he bit his lip, offering the ring up. “I guarantee there’ll be tough times. I guarantee that at some point, one or both of us is going to want to get out of this thing. But I also guarantee that if I don’t ask you to be mine, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life…*”

“Because I know in my heart, you’re the only one for me*,” Steve broke in, smiling.

“Steve Rogers, will you marry me?”

Steve stood, looking down at Tony, who was gazing intently at him, love shining through his beautiful green eyes, his heart in his mouth, and he smiled. “Yes, Tony. I will marry you.”

Steve pulled him up and kissed him tenderly. “Even if you had to go through two Julia Roberts movies to find the words to ask me.”

Tony only pressed his lips hungrily on Steve’s again, and the kiss turned filthy, all questing tongues and nibbling teeth. Steve would never get used to it, the way Tony felt against him, the way Tony tasted on his tongue. And the wave of arousal that overcame him when Tony slid a thigh in between his legs and began grinding his hard cock against Steve’s hip. Steve began kissing and sucking down Tony’s jawline, making his way to that spot on his neck, right below his ear, that made Tony whimper and grasp him hard every time he sucked on it. Tony’s whimpered moans went straight to Steve’s dick, and he slid a hand into Tony’s hair, angling Tony’s head as he kissed Tony’s neck, a line of hot, wet, kisses down from his ear down to his collarbone. Tony was rutting against him, moaning and kneading Steve’s ass. Steve’s other hand slid under Tony’s thigh and lifted him, and Tony immediately wrapped his legs around Steve’s waist, locking his ankles at the small of his back, dragging Steve’s face back to his so he could devour Steve’s lips again.

Not stopping the kiss, Steve began walking towards the bedroom, effortlessly supporting Tony’s weight, walking with complete ease. But when Tony ground himself against him, their hard cocks finally rubbing together through layers of cloth, Steve stumbled and moaned, and pushed Tony up against the nearest wall, freeing a hand to unbutton Tony’s shirt. Tony pulled Steve’s t-shirt off of him, baring that sculpted, chiseled, incredibly muscled chest, and he looked at Steve with hunger in his eyes. He immediately reached down and started unbuckling Steve’s belt while he continued to kiss Steve’s neck, sucking and biting him hard, marking him up. The marks would be gone in a couple of hours given Steve’s quick-healing abilities, but Steve knew his lover enjoyed seeing him marked up, even for a short time.

When Tony’s hand brushed against Steve’s bare cock, dipping beneath his boxer briefs, he shuddered and groaned, unable to stop himself from grinding his hips against Tony’s hand. He pulled away from Tony’s lips, resting his forehead on Tony’s shoulder as he hardened even more when Tony fisted him and began stroking his dick.

“ _Fuck_ ,” he moaned. He wasn’t usually one for foul language, but god, Tony’s hot hand, stroking him, squeezing him, spreading the pre-cum all over, made his breath hitch and pulled moans from him, because Tony’s hand felt _so fucking good_ on him. And then when he began that twisting motion, flicking his wrist deftly on Steve’s cockhead, fuck, Steve moaned and thrusted, biting down on Tony’s shoulder. He tried to keep unbuttoning Tony’s shirt, needing to feel Tony’s skin, but his fingers were starting to tremble and he was finding buttons very troublesome. He grabbed the material in his hands, wanting to get to Tony’s bare flesh as quickly as he could.

“OK, now hold on there, Cap’n,” Tony met his gaze, smiling, putting a hand on his and stilling it, and pulling a groan of protest from him. “I really like this suit and this is my lucky shirt. So no ripping it off me.” Steve glared at him, knowing how much Tony usually loved his overt displays of strength.

Tony took over and quickly unbuttoned his shirt. Steve impatiently pushed it and the jacket off Tony’s arms, and put him down on the floor for a moment, long enough for Tony to undo his own belt and pants. Tony’s pants glided down to the floor in a whoosh of soft material, and Steve ripped Tony’s boxers off him, the material tearing apart easily in his hands, making the green eyed man laugh. Steve’s eyes were on Tony’s hard cock, already starting to bead with pre-cum.

“OK, got the urge to rip clothes off out of your system now, big boy?” Tony teased, although there was no mistaking the fact that his pupils had darkened even more after that display.

Growling in mock annoyance, Steve pulled the completely naked Tony back into his arms, pushing him back up against the wall, and Tony hitched his legs around Steve’s hips and locked his ankles again. And when they rocked against each other, bared cocks rubbing together, sliding against each other, they both moaned. Tony began kissing Steve again, deep, thorough kisses that made Steve’s dick throb because Tony’s mouth, god his mouth, it was perfect and so fucking good at kissing him and making him _feel_ everything. Everything he’d pushed down and hidden, even from himself, every emotion that he’d tried to hide, especially after awakening all those years later and knowing that he’d missed his opportunity to build a life with Peggy. She’d been the love of his life, and they’d barely even known each other. And he thought he’d lost his chance at happiness forever. But Tony had changed all that. He knew Tony the way he’d never known anyone else, not even Peggy. Tony was the true love of his life, bar none. And Tony’s kisses pulled on his soul as well as his dick.

Tony’s hand encircled both their cocks and Steve’s breath hitched at the feel of the hot velvet of Tony’s cockhead against his. They rutted against each other, beginning to slip and slide from their combined pre-cum, oozing from the heads of their cocks, and they panted and moaned into each other’s mouths. Steve released Tony’s hair and moved his hand down, caressing Tony’s neck, his sides and further down, pressing gently on his perineum, making him buck and moan. He kept moving downwards, his index finger circling Tony’s rim, and he felt Tony flutter and clench against him, his rim slippery with lube, and his finger dipped in with no resistance. He pulled away from Tony’s mouth, blue eyes questioning.

“You prepped yourself?” he asked.

“I was hoping you’d say yes,” Tony admitted.

Steve’s smile was possessive. He pulled his aching dick completely out of his pants, pushing his jeans down his hips a little. “You’re so fucking hot, you drive me crazy,” he breathed, eyes closing as Tony spat on his hand and began wetting his cock with his saliva.

“Fuck me,” Tony told him, leaning back against the wall and opening his hips as much as he could while still locking his ankles behind Steve’s back.

“Mmm,” Steve sighed as he rubbed his cockhead against Tony’s rim. He pushed himself in just a bit, feeling Tony’s body grip him and attempt to suck him in, but he pulled out, causing Tony to whimper.

“Please,” Tony begged. “C’mon. Please.”

Smiling wickedly, Steve pushed just the tip of his dick into Tony and held him immobile as Tony tried to fuck himself onto him. He rewarded Tony’s begging by lowering him as he thrust upwards hard, sheathing himself in all the way, his balls slapping against Tony’s ass. Tony’s eyes rolled into the back of his head and he keened, clutching Steve reflexively. He stilled, allowing Tony time to adjust, and when Tony opened his eyes and began moving restlessly, clenching down on him and whimpering, he sucked on Tony’s neck, pinning him against the wall, and began to move, thrusting in and out. Hard and fast, then teasingly slow and deep, and back to hard and fast again.

Tony’s moans were driving him crazy, and he changed his grip, wedging an arm under each of Tony’s thighs, holding him open against the wall, effortlessly managing the other man’s weight, and this changed the angle of his thrusts, so he was nailing Tony’s prostate. Tony spasmed and bucked in his arms, wailing as Steve kept fucking right into his prostate, quick, hard thrusts that never stopped rubbing and hammering against his sweet spot. Steve knew that Tony was close from his harsh pants, his mewling moans, and his inner walls clenching down on him every time he pushed in.

“There, please,” Tony repeated over and over. “ _Nnnh_ , fuck, please, oh fuck…” and Steve continued to pound into his prostate until Tony lost it, and he practically screamed as his dick erupted untouched in between them, thick jets of come splashing hot against their chests.

Steve sped up his strokes, continuing to fuck into Tony’s prostate as the other man orgasmed, watching his face, eyes clenched shut, mouth wide open, making helpless noises that he knew Tony would be embarrassed about when he was back to himself as Tony emptied himself out. It was a long orgasm and his cock was still dribbling in slips and spurts when he clenched down hard on Steve and he couldn’t hold himself back anymore. His hips stuttered and he groaned Tony’s name as he jammed himself deep into Tony’s body, stiffening as his dick pulsed deep inside, long, hot pulses, filling Tony’s ass with come.

They stayed against the wall for long minutes, kissing and nibbling each other gently until their breaths and heart rates calmed. And all Steve could do was smile as he looked at the beautiful man in his arms. He’d suffered some losses, Steve had, but somehow, Tony made things better.

“I wonder what the readers of _Horse and Hound_ would say about what we just did?” Tony whispered.

Even though Steve was still inside of Tony, he couldn’t help but laugh at that. He pushed his face into Tony’s sweaty neck and just laughed.

“Eh, they’d probably just be glad that no horses or hounds were involved,” Tony mused thoughtfully, setting Steve off again.

Later that night, as they laid in bed, Tony’s head pillowed on Steve’s chest, their hands clasped together, fingering the rings on each other’s hands, Steve’s other hand rubbed up and down Tony’s back. They’d just come down from a second round of sex after a lovely, celebratory candlelit dinner, and Steve could see that Tony was drooping.

“Get some sleep,” he urged the man softly.

“Want to savor this,” Tony breathed into his chest.

“You’ve got me for the rest of our lives. Plenty of time for savoring,” Steve smiled down and kissed his head.

“I know. But this, right now. This is perfect.”

Steve sighed, knowing where Tony was going. Their lives were full of uncertainty, both his and Tony’s. “You know we can’t keep a marriage secret from the world,” he said softly.

“I know,” Tony nodded, dropping a soft kiss on Steve’s chest.

“You’re going to be thrown into the spotlight. Unfortunately. I won’t be able to stop it.”

“I know.”

“It’ll probably affect you at work.”

“Yeah. I know.”

“I know we’ve tried to keep us away from your workplace.”

Tony tightened his hold of Steve. “I’m so sorry about that,” he whispered. “I know you hated being a secret.”

“I know why it was necessary,” Steve kissed Tony’s head again, and rubbed his back reassuringly. “It’s a lot to take for anyone, to be in a relationship with me. And your asshole boss isn’t going to let this go easily. Your reasons for keeping us a secret are still valid, babe. I don’t want you to get killed on the job because of me.”

“Yeah,” Tony agreed. “I’ve got to quit my job,” he said sadly.

“I’m sorry, babe,” Steve sighed, hugging him hard. “We can try to keep the marriage a secret.”

“No,” Tony sighed back. “You don’t deserve that. You’re not my dirty little secret. I hate that I’ve made you feel like that.”

“Never,” Steve told him. “You’ve never done that. Always been honest and up front about what you need. I was happy to be able to give it to you. Wish I could continue to do that.”

Tony nuzzled his face into Steve’s neck. “Love you,” he whispered. “Want to marry you.”

“Love you, too. I want to marry you, too,” Steve whispered back.

They laid in silence for a while, breathing in each other’s scents, and Tony’s fingers idly played with the ring that he’d placed on Steve’s finger.

“If you quit your job, what will you do?” Steve asked.

“I don’t have to rush into finding something else right away,” Tony said. “You know my mother left me a trust fund.” A large one, Steve knew. Tony never really needed to work for a living.

“Fury’s asked if you wanted to join S.H.I.E.L.D, you know,” he suggested carefully.

“I don’t want Fury to offer me a job because I’m married to you,” Tony snorted.

“He was looking to recruit you anyway,” Steve said. “Even before he knew about us. Your file was already on his desk.”

“Please,” Tony scoffed. “I have no special abilities. I’m vanilla, through and through.”

“Just, you know, talk to him and don’t dismiss his offer out of hand. Fury is not the kind of guy to go offering jobs to people just because they’re with one of us.”

Tony sighed. “I’ll think about it.”

“Good. Cause you know, it would be easier for you. Nobody at S.H.I.E.L.D would dream about betraying you or not backing you up just because we’re together.”

Tony nodded.

“And NCIS has been making you so unhappy anyway,” Steve sighed.

“I know.”

“And you know, I do want to.”

“Want to what?”

“Marry you. Be with you. Stay with you. Indefinitely.”

Tony raised his head and grinned down at Steve. “Sap,” he grumbled, slapping Steve’s chest. “But indefinitely sounds good. It sounds really good.”

"Good," Steve pulled his face close and kissed him.

They laid quietly for several minutes before Tony gripped Steve's hand. "I'll put in my two week notice on Monday," he whispered.

“All right. Now, sleep, babe,” Steve told him, pulling him back down against his chest. “I love you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you again to [penumbria](http://archiveofourown.org/users/penumbria/pseuds/penumbria) for giving me a chance to fulfill her Reverse Bang prompt at the last minute, and for the extra artwork! That was so cool! :D
> 
> And again, thanks to my friend [cutsycat](http://archiveofourown.org/users/cutsycat/pseuds/cutsycat) for betaing the story.
> 
> The song I was listening to was [Time after Time](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWvPOJOYqGA), sung by Eva Cassidy. I loved the melancholy feel to it and it helped me write this story. A second song that really influenced me was [She](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRxVkt9Eg9o) by Elvis Costello, which was the song that was played at the ending of Notting Hill.
> 
> And if you were interested, here are the scenes from _Notting Hill_ and _Runaway Bride_ quoted in this story:  
>  * [I'm just a girl](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RESwG23_YGw) (Notting Hill)  
> * [Indefinitely](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn4u-guwxfs) scene (Notting Hill)  
> * [Julia Roberts' Proposal](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kd2qHg1xSQg) (Runaway Bride)  
> Please note that all sentences marked with an asterisk (*) are either direct quotes or slight paraphrases from either of those movies.
> 
> Many thanks to [Jacie](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Jacie/pseuds/Jacie) for organizing this challenge!
> 
> Thank you so much for all your support, kudos, and comments in the past few days! It's been hectic to get everything done on time but hopefully you all liked this story!
> 
> See y'all again at some point! :D
> 
> -j  
> xoxo

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Art for "Indefinitely" by jane_x80](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10950054) by [penumbria](https://archiveofourown.org/users/penumbria/pseuds/penumbria)




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